Best Time for Dining?

[ajames]

We're leaving 8/14 on the Spirit to Bermuda. To avoid rambunctious children and get good service, what's the best time to dine in the main dining room (i.e., Windows)? Early or late; and, if late, how late? Thanks.

[Giantfan13]

Not to be evasive, but that is the joy of NCL, to go when you feel more comfortable. Try an early dinner, say 6:00 to 6:30. If that doesn't go well, try a later time the next day. Keep trying until you hit the right time for everyone. Freestyle cruisng at it's best.

[uppitycats]

You want to avoid the first half hour that the dining room opens, and the half hour before that! For example, if the dining room opens at 5:30, people start lining up at the door at 5!, and by 5:30 there is a long line streaming down the hall, and people are getting pushy and cranky. I guess they haven't figured out the concept of freestyle dining :)

 

If you go around 6 or so, you should be able to just walk right in..

[Don Haynes]

Avoid the crowd when the dining rooms open, they line up before 5 for a 5:30 opening. I think they do so for a table by the aft windows. Wait thirty minutes and arrive around 6, you'll almost walk right in as there are plenty of tables left. If you wait until 7, all of the tables will be filled, and you'll have to wait or not wait for a table to be cleared. On the other hand most have already dined by 9, and there should be tables available.

 

Sounds like your favorite restaurant at home on weekends.... Plan accordingly....

[Toyz711]

remember, there are 2 main dining rooms...on the spirit. if you go and think one is too loud, go over to the other one and see if it's quieter.

i find that dining after 8pm has given me the best chance for being seated right away and having quiet dinner. it must work, i have (always) been seated as soon as i got there and have never had my dinner bother by other people.

[Don Haynes]

By the way the worst time is probably arriving to a main dining room just after the first show. NCL isn't one of the other cruise lines with a second seating and an empty dining room after the first show.

[CTCruisers]

We like to see the show so we usually go to dinner between 5:30 and 6:00 so we eat at a leisurely pace. We never had a problem being seated at that time. It is well before the throngs hit the dining rooms, so they are quiet in comparisons to when they are full. Most times the two of us end up with a window table too.

[DAGVBSB]

As most have said... early. We never had to wait for a table when we arrived before 6:15 p.m.. I have also heard that there are no (or little) waits after 8:15 p.m. as well.

[NJ Johnny]

On both the Spirit and Dawn, we never had to wait when arriving at the MDRs between 5:30 and 6.

[mpk218]

It may depend on the size of your party , but if its only the two of you its easy. We are a family of 4 and we show up around 6:30 and I have never waited more than several minutes at most . ;)

[maps]

It depends on the size of your party. We were a group of 15 and we always tried to arrive between 5:30 and 6:30. Sometimes we would have to wait over an hour for 2 tables.

They accept reservations for 5:30 and 8:30 for large groups and we tried to reserve one night at 5:30 and were told they were all booked up.

[garycarla]

Not to be evasive, but that is the joy of NCL, to go when you feel more comfortable. Try an early dinner, say 6:00 to 6:30. If that doesn't go well, try a later time the next day. Keep trying until you hit the right time for everyone. Freestyle cruisng at it's best.

 

I think they were asking for input so they do not have to spend 4 days trying to figure out what is "the right time for everyone".